Interception
by AkumA9
Summary: Letter to Sirius intercepted, Ministry officials flood Hogwarts and Grummauld place is evacuated.
1. Default Chapter

A full six hours of lessons, including a hideous double spent trying to stay awake in the divination room, Harry and Ron collapsed into two chairs in a corner of the common room already occupied by Hermione and Ginny who were whispering conpiringly over a piece of parchment. Uninterested in the subject if their giggling, Ron pulled out an unfinished Potions essay ("Uses of Deadly nightshade in a lawful society") from his bulging school back and began to write.Harry, on the other hand, who was eagerly awaiting a quidditch training sesson at six o'clock was hurriedly scribbling a reply to Sirius' letter of concern about the rumours in todays edition of the Daily Prophet. It had been reported that the ministry of magic had reason to suspect a rebel organization led by Dumbledore, and they would be placing ministry officials within the school's grounds immediately. So far they had seen several unfamiliar faces dotted about the castle, but as the headmaster had not notified the pupils of any such news, it was assumed to be a rumour.  
  
'I'm heading upto the Owlery' he said to Ron with a final flourish of his quill as he signed the letter. 'Wanna come?'  
  
Before Ron could answer, Ginny stood up, clutching the parchment she and Hermione had been poring over. 'I'll come Harry, I've got er...something to send myself'. The girls both giggled, and Harry shrugged and turned for the portrait, slinging his sports bag over his shoulder. It was the first training session since before the Christmas holidays, and he was determined to be on time.  
  
Up in the Owlery, Hedwig was nowhere to be seen. Ginny was busy attempting to hold pigwidgeon still long enough to tie a letter to him, so Harry had to make do with one of the school owls. A handsome Tawny with what appeared to be the tail of a mouse hanging from its beak stared at him expectantly, so, disgustedly, he attached his envelope, and hurried back down the stairs for the changing rooms.   
  
Back in the common room, Ron was racking his brains trying to remember the names of antidotes Snape had mentioned earlier that day to finish his homework, while Hermione was gazing into the fire with glazed eyes.  
  
'It's strange isn't it?' she said in a soft voice, as if addressing nobody in particular. 'To think fifteen or twenty years ago, He Who...I mean, Voldemort was out there, right now, and how nobody was safe.'  
  
Ron stared at her, deducting this was not a good moment to ask her for the antidotes. 'Eh? Where'd that come from?'  
  
'Oh...I don't know. It's just...all this suspense and worrying all the time...never knowing what's going on, it's getting to me. They want everyone to know He's back, but they're cutting us out from the order meetings, not telling us what theirplans are. I feel so...so....'  
  
'Useless.' Ron finished with no question in his voice.  
  
'Yeh I suppose so. Useless.'  
  
'Fact of life, Hermione' he replied, looking back down at his work and frowning.  
  
Hermione stared at Ron as he concentrated on his essay. Normally his patrionising would have annoyed her, but looking at him she felt a tremendous rush of affection for him. After a minute or so, she got up and moved over to the chair closest to Ron's.  
  
'Would you like some help Ron?' 


	2. Lonely

'WATCH WHAT YOU ARE DOING POTTER!' Angelina screamed, her voice echoing loudly through the clear evening air. Regaining concentration, he half heartedly peered around the pitch for the golden speck. Truthfully, he wasn't trying; in the ecstasy of f;ying once again, he could happily soar above the castle for hours, feeling the ind whipping his hair back and leaving his worldly worries back in his school robes. Nobody took the first training session back very seriously, it was more reserved for tiring yourself out to wake up to stiff limbs the next day.  
  
Ignoring the fact he had apotions essay to look forward to on his return to the Common room, he zoomed contentedly around the pitch, oblivious to anything but the feeling of flying.  
  
Reluctantly returning to ground an hour later, he lingered on theempty dark pitch for a minute or so after the other players had entered the changing rooms. He tried to remember standing in that exact spot the last five years of Hogwarts, remembering what life was like then, before Voldemort has arisen last summer. Somehow he couldn't see into his own mind. It was just as dark as the night sky.  
  
centre***/centre  
  
Back in the common room, everyone had gone to bed,exhausted after the first full day back from the holidays. Hermione who had been correcting Ron's homework for him was now waiting for Harry to return from practice. She felt tired and still rather depressed, and didn't go to bed just for the company. The sound of Ron's quill scratching and the warmth of the fire were comforting and she found herself closing her eyes and resting her head...just for a minute...only resting her eyes....  
  
In the midst of his thoughts of Apocalyptic predictions on the early centuries, Ron felt a warm weight fall onto his shoulder. Looking down, afraid to move,he saw Hermione's closed eyes beneath her frizz of hair, and he gently tucked it behind her ear. Exposing her hair fully from its normal bushy surroundings, he thought 'aww' to himself at her gently fluttering eyelids. Putting his work aside, he slowly turned to face her, resting her head on his chest, and threw his coat over her curled up legs. She awoke, sleepily staring up at himthrough her fringe, and felt an involuntary ripple of shock course through her. Ron looked down at her, saw her tired brown eyes boring into his, and felt himself being lulled towards her by an invisible force. Placing his hand gently on her chin, he gave her the smallest and softest kiss on the lips.In a haze of tiredness, sadness and confusion, Hermione pulled herself upwards, and closed her eyes as her lips met Ron's, and she felt his arms close around her. Caught up in the moment, she opened her mouth slightly, hands on the back of his neck,pulling him towards her, the only feeling of love she had felt in ages and she was desperate to hang onto it.  
  
Harry, muling over his essay plan in his head as he trundles back to the Common room,muttered the passwork to the fat lady and stepped past the portrait. What he saw made him freeze. Across an armchair, buried under a coat, his two best friends were wrapped arround eachother, attached at the mouths, like a couple in love who had been missing eachother greatly.  
  
Quietly, Harry tiptoed to the boys dormitory stairs and taking care not to disturb them, quietly closed the door and went to bed. 


End file.
